An Interference
by Sable Supernova
Summary: When another girl begins to battle for his attention, James Potter isn't sure if Lily Evans really is the one for him. One-shot, written for the QLFC, Season 3, Round 3. Score: 9.25/10


**A/N: Written for the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition, for my position as Seeker for the Wigtown Wanderers.**

**My prompt was: Write about a third party interest in your OTP, and for my OTP (as I don't technically have _one_), I chose James and Lily Potter.**

**Thank you to my wonderful beta, Gitana del Sol, for all of her help.**

**NB: Evangeline is an OC.**

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James couldn't remember falling in love with Lily Evans. He couldn't say when it happened or why. All he knew was that by sixth year, he was incomprehensibly, inexplicably, and irrevocably head over heels for her. He loved being in love with her, too. It was so easy for him. The way she walked, the way she talked… In fact, everything she said made him fall for her a little more. Every factoid she shared, every witty remark, every little comment she made was filled with its own perfection, as far as James could see.

The problem was, she didn't seem to like him. Sure, every so often, James would catch her smiling at him when she thought he wasn't looking, but she wouldn't let herself be seen sharing civil words with him, and that got in the way of his attempts at loving her quite a lot.

James pondered this on the Quidditch pitch one Saturday morning, sitting all alone, up in the stands. He'd practiced his feints while the pitch was free, but he just wasn't in the mood.

"Penny for your thoughts?" came a voice behind him, and he saw Evangeline MacLeod swooping down to take a seat behind him, smiling as she fixed her deep blue stare on his hazel eyes. Her Gryffindor robes, matching his own, were rather familiar to James, but all the same he did not smile back. He looked around the pitch and groaned a little when he found himself alone with the girl. He knew she had a mean streak, and he'd always thought her upturned nose looked rather comical from certain angles.

"Ah, nothing, just thinking," he responded. He didn't even talk to his friends about Lily, so he wasn't likely to bear my soul to someone who shared a bedroom with her.

"Lily again, then," she commented dryly.

"It wasn't a question," he said, his tone flat, annoyed at the conclusion she'd jumped to. Evangeline said nothing, and James sighed. He didn't want to talk to her.

"Why do you waste your time on a girl who won't even give you a second look over? Where's the attraction there?" she asked, and there was a twinge of bitterness in her voice.

"I don't know, she's just…cool," he said with a shrug, turning away from her and back towards the Quidditch Pitch.

A group of Second Years appeared at the far end of the pitch, broomsticks in hand and a Zonko's Snitch in their hand. James watched as they threw it between them, waiting for it to explode black ink all over one of them. Their laughter floated up to James on the wind, echoing with the distance. A few minutes past, and Evangeline had been silent. James was beginning to think she had left as quietly as she'd arrived when he suddenly felt movement behind him, and felt her breath, hot on his ear, as she leant in to him.

"When you get bored of being used and walked all over like an underappreciated house-elf, you know where to find me," she whispered. Before James had time to react, she was gone.

At first, he was angry. He stood and left the pitch, storming up to his dormitory, blood running hot. She had no right to make those kind of comments, to talk to him like that - she wasn't his friend. She didn't know him. But over the next few days, James found her words replaying over and over in his mind. What if Lily never gave in? What if he was wrong in his assumption that she'd come round eventually? Did he really want to waste years of his life if it was all going to amount to nothing? There were other fish in the sea who'd feel lucky to be on his arm, after all.

But what really got to him was Evangeline's attitude after what she'd said. She acted as though nothing had happened for a week following that day. She was completely normal around both Lily and James, which really got to him. She obviously had unkind thoughts about Lily, so why was she acting like they were the best of friends? The two didn't collate, and it felt to James like she wasn't being honest with one of them. He wanted to call her out on it, but he didn't. Instead, he let it go. It was just one of those things, James told himself.

Being James Potter, he didn't find himself alone very often, but the next time he did was the following Sunday. Peter and Remus were in the library and Sirius was off… somewhere, so he was walking down to dinner alone, and enjoying the moments' respite. He was off his guard and didn't see her even out of the corner of his eye until it was too late. Before he knew what was happening, Evangeline MacLeod grabbed him from the right, both arms tight around his waist, and pulled him into a broom-closet. She pressed her body up against his as she backed him against the wall. For a moment, he thought she was going to kiss him and he moved as if he was about to protest.

"Shush," she said softly, placing a finger on his lips. "Have you thought about what I said?" she asked, looking at his mouth rather than his eyes. It was disconcerting, and James found himself more nervous than he would have cared to admit.

"You're not worth it," he said, setting his face as hard as the stone that he was resolutely staring at instead of her.

She trailed her fingertips down his chest and pouted.

"Shame, we could have had so much fun together," she teased.

When she kissed him, he couldn't say he hadn't seen it coming, but it still caught him off-guard. She was fierce and hungry, and instead of admitting that he'd never really been kissed before - especially not like that - he did for a moment find his lips softening to the pressure of hers, moulding into her gesture. When his brain caught up with his actions, he pulled his face back and shoved her away from him.

The smug smile on her face was enough to make him feel guilty.

"Leave me alone," he told her gruffly, before getting himself out of the closet as quickly as he could.

When he walked right into Lily Evans, he couldn't believe his luck.

"Are you too important to watch where you're going now?" she asked, derision thick on her tongue as she eyed him. James stared at her, unsure what to do or say as his heart beat a little faster and the back of his neck grew hot. The way Lily's green eyes were glistening and the lingering feeling of that kiss dampening his lips made him stutter a little as he stared. James had always said that Lily was so hot when she was angry.

"Sorry, Evans," James said, too slow to think of one of his usual witty replies. Of course, Evangeline had to walk out of the broom closet behind him at that exact moment, that smug little smile still plastered on her stupid little face.

If he thought Lily was angry before, it didn't compare to the look in her eyes right now as they fixed on Evangeline, and then turned back to him.

"Oh, that's brilliant," Lily began, as Evangeline shimmied past him. "Wasn't it just over a week ago when you tried to convince me you were in love with me?" she asked.

"It was, and I am!" James tried to defend himself, throwing his arms up in the air at his own stupidity. "I can explain this, but you won't listen. And if I recall, you said no a week ago, and a million times before, so you don't get to call me up on it if you think I've finally taken you seriously." He was angry now, too. He didn't like that she had it every way she liked it with him. She shouldn't have that kind of control over him.

"Well I thought you might at least try to prove it, if it was true," she spat, and she had a point.

"And for the record, a week ago… I didn't actually say no," she finished, and stalked off.

He was left flabbergasted, in shock, as he recalled the day in question. He realised that she was right - she hadn't said no.

She hadn't said no.

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**If you didn't like it, it would also be wonderful, then I know what I'm doing wrong!**


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